Yao Yan narrowed his eyes from where he sat and peered at the man.

He couldn’t shake off the feeling that he had seen the stranger before, he just couldn’t figure out where.

As for his parents, they were growing agitated by the minute.

The situation was getting out of control.

Of course, they didn’t want to think that Yao Tanghad lied to them, but they had to admit thatQin Man’s claims made sense.

To begin with, it wasn’t easy to obtain an invitation card to a prestigious event, especially after having lost the original one.

Yet Yao Tanghad only fiddled with her phone, and a man came knocking, with a brand-new invitation card.

It simply didn’t add up!

Jiang Wan stared at the invitation card crumpled on the floor, her brows furrowed.

It was true that the invitations she had seen all these years were mostly gold ones.

She had never even heard of the red one before.

However, the more she looked at it, the more Jiang Wanfelt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

It was almost as if she had actually seen a red invitation before.

But where? And how?

Something clicked in her mind. She whirled around to look at Yao Tang, only to shake her head in the next second.

It couldn’t be… that, right?

Beside her, Yao Rong was busy trying to contact a friend who might be able to get them a new invitation to the Music Association’s event. He didn’t want the child to feel bad about the whole affair and inadvertently hurt her self-esteem.

Meanwhile, Qin Manand the stranger were still at a stand-off near the door. The man was visibly seething. He nodded at the gold invitation inQin Man’s hand and asked, “Who is that invitation for?”

Qin Man preened. “None other than my daughter,Yao Ran, of course. Only someone as talented and hardworking as my daughter is worthy of an invitation from theMusic Association.”

It was the man’s turn to look smug. He cocked his head to the side and said, “I’m afraid I will have to disappoint you. Because of your attitude toward me, a reputable member of the Music Association, your daughter will never have the chance to participate in the assessment event. Not now, not ever.”

“Bah, bah, bah, what the hell are you talking about?” Qin Manharrumphed. “Just shut up and scram already!”

The man ignored her and turned to Yao Tang. “Miss Yao, may I know if the owner of this gold invitation is related to you?”

“Nope,” Yao Tang quipped.

The man nodded. “Then, I shall punish this person according to the rules and regulations of the Music Association. Do you have any objections?”

The corners of Yao Tang’s lips lifted ever so slightly. “None at all.”

Qin Man looked back and forth between the two, unable to follow their exchange. What she did know, was that a feeling of foreboding was slowly creeping into her heart.

Before she could even comprehend it, the man turned to her again. “Madam,” he said, his tone blunt and cold. “On behalf of the Music Association, I am officially issuing a notice to you and your daughter. Your daughter’s slot at the assessment is hereby revoked due to your utter lack of discretion!”

Qin Man smirked and rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. Just call it a day. What is your problem? Are you addicted to acting or something?”

Suddenly, the door to the private room burst open.

Qin Man was bracing herself for another confrontation when she saw the owner of the restaurant walk inside.

He was the head of the Huo family, and the leader of the catering industry in all of City A.

Qin Man’s eyes flashed in surprise. She beamed and hurried over to offer her greetings.

Likewise, Yao Yuanalso scrambled out of his seat and walked up to them with a cigarette between his fingers.

“President Huo,” he greeted. “What brings you here?”

He wasn’t expecting to see President Huo in the flesh while they were dining in one of his establishments.

As high-profile as he was, the president didn’t care to interact with the customers in his restaurants.

Could it be that President Huo had personally come down to their private room with the intent to establish a business relationship with the Yao family?

Yao Yuan’s eyes gleamed at the thought. It was all he could do not to lean over and shake the man’s hands in earnest.